Duchess of York's peculiar way of describing her breast cancer
The Duchess of York has described her breast cancer as an “enormous friend” who she has come to think of as a “shield of protection”.
The mother-of-two, 63, has been undergoing treatment for the disease after it was picked up during a routine mammogram.
The Duchess underwent an eight-hour single mastectomy operation in London’s King Edward VII’s Hospital last month and has been using her podcast “Tea Talks” to encourage other women to get screened regularly.
In the most recent episode, she spoke to her close friend and co-host Sarah Thomson about how she has come to feel about her diagnosis.
“People are asking me about this breast cancer,” she said.
“And actually, you know, I really feel this is really exciting, about having this enormous friend with me, who is now my friend, to such a degree I feel like a shield, like I’ve got a shield of protection, because it feels like it’s definitely there to say we got this.”
The Duchess said she had been enjoying watching Wimbledon while she is recovering from her surgery and said she had written 500 thank you letters in one week to people who had shown her an “outpouring of kindness”.
The disease runs in the Duchess’s family including her father, Major Ronald Ferguson, who had prostate cancer. Her stepfather, Hector Barrantes, was only 51 when he died of cancer.
The family tragedies inspired the Duchess to become involved with cancer charities, a commitment which has lasted over three decades.
The Duchess also said she believes in “manifestation” and “the power of positive thought”, adding: “I think there’s no question about it”.
Discussing how to cultivate resilience, the Duchess also said she does not have any regrets in life.
She said: “I’ve looked back and I learn. I move forward and I grow.”
In 2011 she apologised for a “gigantic error of judgement” after Prince Andrew took money from convicted child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein to help pay off her debts.
Perhaps alluding to the scandal in the episode, which was released on Wednesday, she said: “I am resilient and I’ve learned but I do not regret, and so that is why I’m deeply sorry if I caused terrible pain for millions of people, hundreds or thousands or whatever else I meant to have done.
“I am deeply sorry for that because that was purely unintentional, and ignorance at the time of making the wrong decision is ignorance.”
However, the Duchess said although it is normal to “worry terribly about the ramifications of your actions ... it’s just about being so incredibly authentic”.
Earlier in the 40-minute episode, the hosts answered a listener’s question about how to “rebound after significant hardship”, which they interpreted as financial troubles.
The Duchess said: “When you are there, and I’ve been there many times, is that you really have to pull in that determination within. They say on the aeroplane you put the oxygen mask on yourself and get strong.”
